The First Mission
by elbcw
Summary: After d'Artagnan's first time leading the group does not go quite according to plan Porthos decides to tell him about Athos' first time as leader. Athos would rather he did not. (Please read the authors note within).
1. Chapter 1

Author's note: This is dedicated to anonymous reviewers.

I had an anonymous review (which I deleted because I was annoyed) for 'Making Friends' and I would have liked to respond to say that whilst I agreed that Porthos was out of character in that piece, I mentioned this several times; Aramis was surprised he was squeamish and had not dealt with injuries before, and Porthos comments that he preferred to be in the thick of battle rather than helping to fix injured comrades. His squeamishness will be further addressed in this story.

Anyway...this is a follow up to both 'Life and Death' and 'Making Friends'. You don't need to have read either, but I will not stop you.

The story takes place at two different times, with flashbacks taking up most of the action; if you are not a fan of stories that use flashbacks this might not be for you - just so you know!

And sorry if there is some canon divergence, but I cannot remember every tiny piece of information from the show.

They are all in it, Athos has a difficult decision to make, Porthos gets annoyed, Aramis gets hurt and d'Artagnan listens.

I hope you enjoy it.

 **Chapter One**

'I think we should stop,' said Aramis quietly to d'Artagnan, 'not all of us, but if he stays on a horse for much longer he's going to pass out.'

Aramis watched d'Artagnan subtly look across to Athos who was riding behind Porthos. The man was trying to hide how much pain he was in, but he was not succeeding very well.

Both Aramis and d'Artagnan looked over as the Comte, who was riding with Pierre, fell into step with them.

The Compe leaned over a little, 'if we do not stop soon your friend there is going to fall off that horse.'

D'Artagnan smiled, 'that's what Aramis just said. But you need to get to Paris.'

'Perhaps we could camp, and give Athos a chance to rest whilst Pierre, Marc and Luc take the Comte and his wife on to Paris. The road between here and the Palace is safe enough and with three capable Musketeers I'm sure they would be fine.'

Aramis could tell d'Artagnan was mulling the suggestion over.

They had rescued the Comte from several men who were torturing him for information, his wife had been injured escaping but was now happily reunited with her husband. Athos had been shot, leaving him with a painful injury to his hip during the rescue.

D'Artagnan nodded, he turned to the Comte who smiled.

'I will be more than safe with these three,' he said indicating the man he was riding with and the two other Musketeers who were riding with his wife and servant.

'That's settled then,' said Aramis who peeled away to talk to Porthos and Athos.

'I'm fine,' said Athos, who had overheard the conversation.

'No you're not,' replied Aramis, 'and we don't want to have to carry you back.'

'Sir,' Athos turned to the Comte, 'it doesn't need all three of them to stay with me.'

The Comte smiled, 'I think it does, it seems clear to me that these three,' he nodded to Pierre, Marc and Luc, 'are one team, who work together well, and you four are another. With one of you injured the others are all just going to worry until you are safe. We will be fine, it's not that far now...but too far for you to manage without a break.'

Aramis chuckled when Athos shrugged his shoulders in defeat and said, 'I give in, you are all ganging up on me,' he glanced at d'Artagnan, 'wait until I am back in charge, l will have you on stable duty.'

D'Artagnan said, 'if you can get off that horse and walk over here I will gladly do stable duty.'

Porthos smirked, 'just accept that he has usurped you.'

'It was a mistake ever letting him take charge,' replied Athos with a ghost of a smile as he accepted that he was not going to win the argument.

MMMM

After separating, Aramis led the remaining men to a clearing he knew in a small wood. Whilst the marksman disappeared to catch them something to eat, Porthos and d'Artagnan set up camp. Athos sat in the centre of the clearing tending to the fire he had built up.

Porthos draped Athos cloak over his shoulders.

'Thank you.'

'I think we need to talk to d'Artagnan,' said Porthos as he watched the young Musketeer tending to their horses.

'I know, he is still preoccupied with what he had to do when I was incapacitated,' replied Athos.

Porthos watched the young man for a few seconds thinking about the situation d'Artagnan had found himself in. Athos had been injured and was unconscious and Aramis and he were taking the Comte's wife to safety. D'Artagnan had been left as the most senior Musketeer and what had been a training exercise in leadership suddenly became the real thing for him. D'Artagnan had been forced to allow Pierre to take a potentially deadly risk in order to facilitate their entry to the castle to rescue the Comte. The situation had left d'Artagnan constantly replaying the decision in his mind. The young man had been quiet for much of the journey.

Aramis reappeared with two hares that he had shot.

'We will eat well tonight,' he said with a smile as he settled himself by the fire and began to prepare them a meal.

D'Artagnan crossed to the fire and settled himself opposite the others.

'Could I have done something different?'

Athos sighed, 'possibly, but what you did had the desired effect. The Comte was rescued and you dealt with the men who had taken him.'

'But Pierre could have been killed.'

'Could have,' said Aramis, without looking up from his work.

'Exactly,' interjected Porthos, 'you will be faced with lots of situations like that. You know, Athos had to do something…'

'We are not talking about that,' said Athos.

Porthos carried on regardless, '...Athos had to do something similar when he was first in charge.'

'Really?'

'Yes, he did,' said Aramis with a smile.

'What happened?'

'Everyone was fine,' said Athos in an obvious attempt to move the conversation on.

Porthos looked at him, he knew Athos did not like them talking about his first time leading. But Porthos decided it would help d'Artagnan to hear a story where Athos was not as sure of himself as he usually was.

'I'm telling it,' he said with a grin.

'Why aren't you telling the story?' asked d'Artagnan looking toward Aramis.

'Because 'e don't remember all of it,' said Porthos before Aramis could respond for himself.

Athos looked at Porthos with narrowed eyes, 'if you are going to recount the story, at least do not embellish or exaggerate it, as you usually do.'

Aramis sat forward, the dinner preparations forgotten, 'that's half the fun.'

Porthos made himself comfortable as he took in his audience. D'Artagnan was watching him expectantly, Aramis was grinning as he glanced at Athos who was feigning disinterest.

MMMM

 _Several years ago..._

Athos had joined the ranks of the Musketeers at the same time as Porthos. Both men had been lucky enough to be handpicked by Treville and had not had to spend time working their way up. But where Porthos had initially struggled to fit in due to his background, Athos had been accepted with little issue from the other commissioned men.

Neither Aramis or Porthos knew much about Athos' background. He was always reticent to talk to them. He was amiable enough when he had to be but had made little effort to make friends during the few months he had been with the garrison.

Treville had summoned them to his office. Porthos realised that other than a couple of stints of guard duty with Athos this would be the first time he had worked with the man.

'I have a job for the three of you. Athos, do you remember Roussel?'

Athos nodded, 'we worked together a couple of times when I first joined the Musketeers. I've not seen him for some time. I thought perhaps he had left.'

Treville shook his head, 'he took on an undercover assignment. He has successfully infiltrated a gang of spies a few hours ride from Paris. The last update I had from him was three months ago. I went personally to obtain it that time, but I cannot leave Paris at the moment, so I need you to go for me.'

Athos nodded.

'Porthos, Aramis, you will follow Athos' lead. He knows the area where the gang have settled, and he knows our informant.'

Porthos nodded his accent. He had no issue with following Athos. The man would clearly make a capable leader. He knew that Aramis, despite having a longer service than Athos was not interested in leadership and he did not feel ready for a leading role.

'When do we leave?' asked Aramis.

'Immediately.'

The three men bid their captain good day and left the office. As they made their way down the steps to the yard Athos turned to them both.

'Although he has put me in charge, please do not feel that I will be taking over,' he said. Porthos detected a slight apprehension in Athos' voice, 'I value both of your experience, you have both been soldiers longer than I.'

'And I for one value your ability to remain calm and collected during any situation,' replied Aramis with a smile, 'now if you will excuse me I need to replenish my medical equipment before we leave.'

Aramis hurried off to the infirmary. Athos turned to Porthos.

'Perhaps you could collect food for us all? I would hope we will only need to be away for one or two nights.'

Porthos nodded and wandered off to the kitchen. Athos disappeared in the direction of the armoury.

Between the three of them, Porthos decided, they would be able to deal with any eventuality.

MMMM

They rode without incident to a spot near to the spies hide out. The plan was for Athos to rendezvous with Roussel that evening at a tavern in the nearest town. The meeting had been arranged by Treville when he had last met with his man.

'What's Roussel like?' asked Porthos, 'I vaguely remember him, but he disappeared so early I didn't get a chance to talk to him.'

'I can understand why Treville sent him on this mission,' replied Athos as they pulled the saddles off their horses, 'he is a very good reader of people, I suspect he managed to fit in quickly with the spies, and he speaks Spanish like a Spaniard.'

'He's a rubbish shot though. I remember trying to help him get his shooting improved, but he just does not have the eye for it. Good with a sword as I recall,' said Aramis.

Athos spent a few moments pulling off his pauldron and Musketeers cloak, he neatly put them with his other belongings by his saddle.

'I do not know how long this will take,' he said, 'if you two position yourselves within sight of the tavern you can intercede if anything goes wrong.'

They all knew the risks. Treville had said that on his visit to gather intelligence from Roussel he had not been alone. The rest of the gang did not seem bothered that their newest member had been speaking to an apparent old friend but Treville was worried that if the gang were with Roussel they may not like the idea of him happening across another old friend in similar circumstances. If something untoward did occur, Aramis and Porthos were there to back Athos up.

They followed Athos at a distance and watched him enter the tavern. Aramis jumped up onto a wall to sit and wait whilst Porthos leaned against it with his arms folded. Both men wore plain cloaks so as not to draw attention to themselves as soldiers.

'Do you think Treville wants Athos to be the Captain when he retires?' asked Porthos glancing up at Aramis.

'He'd make a good Captain,' replied Aramis, 'but Treville's not going anywhere any time soon.'

'I know, but when he does…'

'Yes. I cannot see anyone else within the garrison who could hold a candle to Athos' natural leadership skills.'

They continued to wait in silence watching as people came and went from the tavern. At one-point Aramis had to lay a restraining hand on Porthos' shoulder when a man left the tavern practically dragging a young woman with him. The woman was trying to pull away. Porthos wanted to go and help her but Aramis shook his head.

They watched as the woman was dragged along the road a little way before the door to the tavern again opened and two burly lads exited and ran after the couple. Porthos was impressed with their rescue of the young woman. The man who had been pulling her away was left on the ground clutching at his groin where he had been kicked by the woman after her rescuers had liberated her.

'Were you really going to let that happen?' asked Porthos, a little surprised that Aramis had stopped him from helping the woman.

'Of course not, but if either of us had interfered too close to the tavern it would have drawn attention to us.'

'You are very sly, you know that, don't you?' said Porthos shaking his head.

'I have no idea what you mean,' replied Aramis with a grin.

'You should be a spy.'

Aramis shook his head, 'I don't think I would want to do all that sneaking about.'

Porthos shook his head, amused at Aramis, knowing full well the man had plenty of sneaking about experience.

The door to the tavern opened again, Athos walked out with Roussel, they spoke briefly on the threshold before the other man returned inside and Athos walked away. He glanced in their direction as he went. Athos looked concerned.

Without a word both Porthos and Aramis followed.

MMMM

When they had returned to their camp Athos turned to speak to them.

'We have a problem,' he said, 'Roussel's cover is shaky. He had an incident a couple of weeks ago where he was ordered to kill a man. He hesitated. Although he did shoot the man, the gang are now wary of him. He should not have had any difficulty killing the man.'

'I take it that the man he killed was innocent?' asked Porthos.

Athos nodded, 'the man had wandered into an area that the gang consider theirs. The gang decided he must have been spying on them.'

'Spying on spies,' remarked Aramis with a sigh, 'unfortunately they are going to be overly precautious. Is Roussel in danger? Do we need to pull him out of there?'

Athos paused for a moment before continuing, 'the intelligence he was able to give me is of vital importance, and he is likely to be able to obtain more, if his cover is not blown...he needs to make up for his hesitation. And the only way he can see to do that is by killing a man.'

Porthos was shocked, 'so he has to shoot some random person to get back in the gang's good books.'

'Unfortunately, I do not think it will be that simple. Whoever he shoots has to be deserving...as far as the gang are concerned...someone needs to stray onto their land, get too close to the hideout.'

'Effectively recreating the previous encounter. But this time Roussel will not hesitate,' said Aramis.

Porthos scowled at Athos, 'who is gonna do that? We can't wait for some poor soul to accidentally wander onto their land.'

Aramis looked at Porthos, 'one of us is going to have to do it.'

Porthos had already wondered if that was where Athos was heading with his suggestion. Athos was looking at the ground, he sighed before speaking again.

'It can't be me. I met some of the gang, it might raise suspicion.'

'Are you proposing that one of us is killed?'

'Porthos,' said Aramis, 'I don't think Athos wants one of us to die, I'm guessing, or at least hoping you have a plan where we can pretend to be killed?'

Athos looked away for a second before he spoke again, 'Roussel will be on patrol tomorrow, he will find an intruder near the river, he will shoot the intruder in the arm, the intruder will fall into the river and be washed away.'

'Did you hear Aramis earlier?' asked Porthos, 'Roussel's a rubbish shot.'

Athos nodded sadly, 'I know, I am sorry, but we could not come up with a better plan.'

Porthos thought for a moment before speaking again, 'I'll do it.'

Athos shook his head, 'I'm sorry Porthos, it has to be Aramis.'

'Why?'

'Because the gang, will see your death as not being...worth as much as killing a…'

'White man,' finished Porthos.

He could tell Athos had felt awful having to spell it out for him.

'I'm used to it Athos,' he said quietly, 'but I'm not happy about sending Aramis.'

'Neither am I particularly,' said Aramis, 'but if what you say is correct Athos, and the intelligence is going to save lives, we don't have a choice.'

'How strong a swimmer are you?' asked Porthos.

'Strong enough but carrying an injury it might be a different story.'

Porthos shook his head, the plan was awful. But he had to agree it was probably the best they could come up with.

MMMM

 _Now..._

'So rather than embellish the story, you intend to play down just how annoyed and angry you were when Athos suggested I had to allow myself to be shot?' asked Aramis, who had been listening to every word Porthos had spoken.

D'Artagnan could tell Porthos was a little embarrassed.

When Athos did not react or comment on what Aramis had said the marksman moved to his side, 'he's passed out. Perhaps you're boring him Porthos?'

Porthos scowled at Aramis.

'What your storyteller is not telling you,' continued Aramis, once he was satisfied Athos was breathing steadily, 'is that he tried to punch Athos. I had to hold him back and calm him down. I don't remember it myself, but Athos always gets annoyed that you miss that bit out.'

'Alright, I was angry, I was annoyed that we were going to send a man to die.'

'But the intelligence was vital,' interjected Aramis.

Porthos said quietly, 'I didn't want to lose my best mate.'

Aramis smiled and put his arm around Porthos, 'I'm flattered,' he said as Porthos pushed him away.

'Yes, I was angry, yes, I tried to hit Athos, and yes, Aramis had to hold me back,' admitted Porthos, 'can I continue?'

Aramis nodded.

MMMM

 _Then..._

After Porthos had managed to calm himself down and Aramis released him they tried to continue as if nothing had happened. They prepared a meal and tried to settle down for the night.

'Porthos, I'll be fine,' said Aramis who was watching him not eat his meal.

'You won't be, you'll be shot, and then you'll probably drown.'

Aramis sighed, 'but the intelligence is too important.'

Porthos looked at Athos who had remained silent as they ate their meal, 'I'm not sure Treville made such a good choice putting you in charge.'

'That's uncalled for,' said Aramis, who rarely admonished anyone, 'we're in a difficult situation.'

Porthos put his plate down, rose from next to the fire and wandered off. He stopped at the edge of the camp and sat on the trunk of a fallen tree, with his back to the others. He knew that Athos and Aramis were right. There really was no other way to deal with the situation, but he hated the method they were to use. The chances of Aramis surviving were slim. He had seen the river, it was fast flowing after recent rains and was littered with protruding rocks. If Roussel did not kill him when he shot Aramis, the fall or the rocks might finish the job. And there was always the chance that one of the other gang members would find Aramis first and shoot to kill before Roussel could play his part in the rouse.

It had taken Porthos a long time to gain his place amongst the Musketeers and now, he realised selfishly, there was a good chance he would lose the man who had helped him get there.

MMMM


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two**

Porthos had entered an uneasy truce with Athos. He still had not fully forgiven the man for his plan but at the same time knew that it was the best, and only, plan they had. Aramis was a grown man and knew what he was getting into. If Aramis had really not wanted to play his part, Porthos was sure Athos would not have forced him to. Would he?

Athos was leading them; he was in charge of the mission. Porthos knew that one day he wanted to lead a group of men, he wondered if he could send men to their almost certain deaths or worse to a certain death. At least with this plan, they aimed to get Aramis back alive. Although what state his friend would be in he did not know.

They had found themselves a spot on an overhanging rock and were lying flat watching for Aramis to appear. The rocky landscape had plenty of places where they could conceal themselves. From their position, they could see the area where Aramis intended to be found. It was close to the swollen river. Porthos could not see any rocks in the river immediately beneath where Aramis intended to fall but there were some further along.

The plan was for Porthos to help Aramis out of the river while Athos stayed and watched how the gang reacted to Roussel shooting him. If they did not accept him fully into their ranks again Athos had decided the infiltration would have to come to an end. It would be better for a member of the gang to disappear rather than be found as a spy. If he was uncovered the gang would know they had been compromised and may split up or move to a different location.

Aramis had removed all his weapons and his doublet before walking off towards the gang's lands. Porthos had seen Aramis and Athos make eye contact before he went. Aramis had nodded to Athos. It was clear his friend did not hold any ill will towards their new leader. Porthos was still not sure he was ready to follow suit.

Roussel could be seen about a hundred yards away. He had another member of the gang with him. Roussel had managed to distance himself a little so that he could find Aramis on his own. Aramis had reached the spot by the river, he looked over the steep bank before glancing in their direction. Porthos did not think that Aramis could see them from where he was, but he knew they were there. Porthos hoped that was a comfort for Aramis.

All they could do was wait. Porthos hoped they would not have to wait for long.

MMMM

 _Now…_

Aramis was watching d'Artagnan who had become quite thoughtful as Porthos had explained how he felt and how angry he had still been with Athos.

'What were you thinking? Do you know how Athos felt?' he asked looking at Aramis.

Aramis glanced at the still form of Athos before saying, 'he told me he felt guilty about it. Felt awful for coming up with the plan. But rather like you yesterday, d'Artagnan, he could not come up with anything better. Anything that did not involve one of his men coming to harm.'

With a slight smile Aramis continued, 'and Porthos was reflecting Athos' own thoughts of his inadequacy to lead.'

Porthos looked surprised, 'really? I didn't know that.'

Aramis nodded, 'yes, he really did not think he was fit to lead if he ended up sending a man to die on his first mission.'

'That's how I felt,' said d'Artagnan, 'poor Athos.'

Aramis said, 'you do both realise, Pierre didn't die yesterday and I didn't die back then. I am still here,' he said.

D'Artagnan managed a smile, 'sorry. And you, what were you thinking?'

'That bit I do remember,' said Aramis quietly, 'I was scared, but I had a sense of duty to my country. At least that is what I was telling myself...actually I was really scared. I was worried Roussel would not shoot straight, I was worried I would drown. But,' he continued, 'I also knew, and still know, that soldiers rarely reach old age, so if it was my time, it was my time.'

D'Artagnan nodded to Porthos who continued to relate what had happened.

MMMM

 _Then..._

Roussel continued to close in on the spot where Aramis was waiting. Porthos was edgy, he was eager for the plan to work but would also have been quite happy for them to give up and leave. He could tell Athos was uncomfortable watching the events unfolding in front of them.

Aramis had spotted Roussel and turned his back on the approaching man. When Roussel saw Aramis, he shouted out to the man he was with. The most difficult part of the plan was for Aramis and Roussel to time their interaction so that the other gang member would see Aramis being shot but would not have time to shoot as well.

Aramis turned to Roussel and rushed towards him. Roussel raised his weapon and fired.

Porthos could not help his reaction. The plan had not played out as they had wanted. The idea had been for Aramis to stagger back and stumble off the bank of the river and be carried away by the current. Carried away and out of further danger.

But Roussel's shot had not hit Aramis in the arm. Rather than stumble backwards Aramis had taken a couple of steps to the side before crumpling to the ground.

Porthos became aware of Athos holding him down. He had not even realised he was rising to stand. He was about to rush forward and ruin the plan by trying to save Aramis.

Roussel looked shocked, they knew he had planned to shoot Aramis in the arm. But, as Aramis had already pointed out to them, he was a poor shot. Porthos could see blood already staining the side of Aramis' shirt.

The other gang member was heading in the direction of Roussel and Aramis, his gun ready. The other gang member was sure to finish off the intruder. Porthos doubted Roussel would be able to stop him. Aramis would be killed.

Athos had to grab Porthos a second time, pinning him down.

Porthos stopped struggling against Athos and returned his attention to Aramis. He was not sure he wanted to watch as his friend was killed. He did not care that Aramis was dying in the service of his country.

Roussel had still not moved, he was staring at Aramis. Despite the obvious injury Aramis seemed to have come to his senses before Roussel. A need to survive had kicked in within the injured man. Aramis had managed to twist himself around and was crawling towards the river bank.

Porthos looked towards the advancing gang member and was horrified to see a second and third man had joined him. Aramis stood no chance.

As the gang members arrived Roussel appeared to get over his shock. He turned to Aramis who was nearing the bank, but quickly losing his strength. Aramis was on the edge of the bank but had slumped down. Porthos looked away. He wanted to remember his friend alive, not with several gunshots in his back.

He felt Athos nudge him. Porthos looked up again. Roussel had moved to Aramis' side. They heard him speaking to the other men but could only pick out odd words. 'Dead' being one of them. Roussel pushed at Aramis with his foot before tipping him over the bank. Limply Aramis fell into the river. They did not see him hit the water, only heard the splash.

The other gang members reached the bank of the river, they were laughing. Both Porthos and Athos stared in shock as the other three men raised their weapons and fired into the river, they could only guess they were firing at Aramis. But they had no idea if the shots had hit him or not.

Athos released his hold on Porthos who did not need telling what he had to do.

MMMM

Porthos ran, he ran hard and fast. The terrain was not best suited for speed. But Porthos knew if he had any hope of helping his friend he had to get ahead of him. The path that followed the river did not stay on the bank it meandered away several times. Each time it returned to the water's edge Porthos searched the foamy current for Aramis. The injured man was nowhere to be seen.

Had he been too slow, was Aramis already gone, washed further down the fast-flowing river? They had not been able to tell how badly injured Aramis was, but it had not looked good. And there was the possibility that he had been shot again by one or more of the gang members who had fired their weapons at him.

The steep bank had gradually levelled out until the path Porthos was running along was only a few inches above the water, a gentle slope leading from dry land to the water.

'Aramis!'

Porthos managed to increase his speed when he saw his friend in the shallows up ahead. The man had managed to get himself out of the centre of the river and was trying, weakly, to pull himself further up onto the bank.

Porthos skidded to a halt splashing water over the injured man as he did so. He hooked his hands under Aramis' arms and hauled him out of the water and further up the bank. Aramis was conscious but disorientated, he tried to push Porthos away from him.

'It's me, calm down, I'm helping you,' said Porthos as he pushed his friend on to his side.

Aramis was struck by a coughing fit, he spluttered and gasped for air, clutching at his side as he did so.

Porthos was busy searching for any further injuries, finding only a nasty bruise on his head, and bruising across Aramis' torso. Porthos began pulling the blood-stained shirt off his friend. Aramis' weak protests stopped, Porthos quickly checked his friend was still breathing and had only passed out before continuing with his ministrations.

The wound to Aramis side would need stitches, the shot had passed through his body just below the skin. A corresponding wound told Porthos he would not be digging out a ball. He pulled off the medical bag he had slung across his shoulder and began searching through for what he would need.

Aramis was fortunate, although Porthos was worried about the bruise on his head and wondered if he might have any injured ribs. He glanced back at the river and the multitude of protruding rocks, one of which was no doubt the cause of his friend's current state of unconsciousness.

As Porthos went about cleaning the gunshot wound he said a quiet thank you to his unconscious friend. Aramis had helped him to overcome his squeamishness, to the point that he felt confident to deal with the injuries the man himself had now received.

MMMM

Porthos grabbed his gun and levelled it in the direction of the noise he had heard. Someone was approaching. He hoped it was Athos but did not want to take the risk if it was not.

Athos slowed to a walk his arms out in submission. Porthos lowered the gun and returned his attention to Aramis.

'Roussel has gone back with the others, they seemed quite impressed with him. I followed them a little way and he appears to be fully accepted by them.'

Porthos nodded, he was not really interested.

'How is he?'

'The ball went through, it doesn't seem to have caused any problems, I've stitched the two wounds. He must have hit one of the rocks, he's got bruising and a bang on the head. He's not come around yet, but he was conscious when I pulled him out of the river.'

Porthos handed Athos a roll of linen before gently pulling Aramis up into a sitting position as Athos wrapped the bandage around the unconscious man, covering the two wounds.

'I don't want to move him until he wakes up...are we far enough away from the gang?'

Athos nodded.

They sat in silence for a few minutes.

'I'm sorry,' said Athos eventually, 'I'll take responsibility for this when we get back to Paris. I should have come up with something better.'

Porthos shook his head, 'no, it was a good plan, and it worked. I shouldn't have doubted you.'

'But he nearly died; he might still die.'

'He's too stubborn,' replied Porthos with a smile.

Athos paused again, 'I'll...er...buy you both dinner when we get back to Paris.'

Porthos could tell Athos was still feeling guilty about their current situation.

'Thank you,' said Porthos, 'I'll look forward to it.'

Aramis groaned and tried to sit up. Porthos stopped him, keeping him still until he had fully woken up.

The injured man looked very confused.

'Was there a fight?' he asked, his speech a little slurred.

Athos moved forward slightly, 'what's the last thing you remember?'

Porthos helped Aramis to sit up slowly, keeping a steadying arm across his friend's shoulders.

After a few seconds of thought, Aramis said, 'leaving the garrison, to meet a spy?'

'Some things have happened since then,' said Athos with a concerned look toward Porthos.

Aramis looked between them, 'how much have I forgotten? How many days?'

'Only a couple,' replied Porthos.

'It might come back,' said Aramis as he gazed into the distance, 'I'm guessing the pounding in my head means I've either been hit or I hit something else?'

Porthos nodded with a smile, 'yeah, we'll fill you in on the details.'

MMMM

 _Now..._

D'Artagnan was watching Aramis who had unconsciously moved his hand across to rest where the injury must have been. Porthos noticed and reached over, squeezing his friend's shoulder.

'I can't believe you were squeamish,' said d'Artagnan, turning to Porthos.

Porthos did not respond.

Aramis spoke instead, 'when he was younger, back in the Court of Miracles he tried to help a man who had been injured. But he believes he made it worse and the man died. Porthos blamed himself...although I still think the man would have died anyway.'

'You don't know that…' said Porthos looking away.

Aramis continued, 'when he joined the infantry he kept away from injured men because he was worried he would do more harm than good. It wasn't until we were on a mission and I was injured that he had to face the fear...and I'm glad he did, otherwise I probably would have died.'

Porthos looked back at Aramis, 'I had a good teacher; although you still complain about my stitches.'

'He complains about everyone's stitches,' said d'Artagnan.

Porthos nodded, 'true. He is too much of a perfectionist. At least he was unconscious whilst I dealt with that particular injury.'

'It was after that mission that Treville started sending us out together as a team. Athos just sort of became the leader, it wasn't long after that he was promoted officially,' said Aramis looking at the still sleeping man.

'I can't imagine the three of you not working together,' remarked d'Artagnan.

'And to think that the first time we did, it was nearly the undoing of us,' said Porthos.

Athos stirred and opened his eyes. He looked across at them.

'Sorry,' he said, 'must have passed out. How much did he exaggerate?'

'Very little,' replied Aramis, as he helped Athos to sit up a little, leaning him against his saddle, 'he didn't say I had more injuries than I actually had, and he didn't make himself out to be a better field medic than me.'

Porthos scowled at Aramis.

'And he mentioned your fight and the conversation you two had...the one where you both apologised.'

D'Artagnan looked a little confused.

'Porthos usually misses out the bit where he nearly punched me and consequently doesn't mention the part where we apologise to each other,' said Athos.

D'Artagnan nodded his understanding as Porthos tried to hide his embarrassment.

'But the point is, d'Artagnan,' said Athos, 'that what you had to do yesterday will not be the only difficult life and death decision you have to make.'

D'Artagnan nodded again, he was beginning to accept that leadership was difficult. His plan had worked, as had Athos'. It had led to a lot of worry and doubt in both of them; which he supposed was one of the things that leadership entailed.

'And you will come up against adversity,' continued Athos, 'not just from outsiders but from your men as well.'

Athos glanced at Porthos who smiled slightly.

'And despite the way I behaved,' said Porthos, 'Athos retained his leadership position, I acted a little childishly…'

'A little,' interjected Aramis, earning himself a shove from Porthos.

'...a little childishly, but I still saw him as our leader, even though I didn't like his plan.'

'Yes,' said Athos, 'if they do not realise they are being led, they tend to do as they are told.'

Both Aramis and Porthos laughed and then nodded.

'Next time you will be better prepared. I know I was,' concluded Athos.

'Oh, you mean the time that Porthos and that woman got lost and I ended up with a broken ankle,' said Aramis with a chuckle.

Athos nodded, 'yes, despite it seeming to be a total disaster, I felt I had a better control of the situation.

'What happened?'

'Well,' said Porthos, 'it all started with Treville receiving a letter…'

Athos shook his head, Aramis tried not to laugh again and Porthos sat forward, ready to regale d'Artagnan with further stories of their early years together.

The End.

Authors note: I hope you enjoyed it.


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